Bear Proof Your Dollar Point Home!

Courtesy of TahoeWildBears.org and the Bear League

Bears are attracted to anything that is edible or that they associate with food. Take precautions by implementing the following ideas:

Garbage problems can be solved with the purchase and correct use of a bear-proof garbage container. Save money by sharing one with a neighbor! For approved bear-proof containers and where to buy them go to their website.

Wait to put trash out until collection day. Trash day for the DPA subdivision is on Thursday.

Do not leave trash, groceries, or animal feed in your car.

Keep garbage cans clean and deodorize them with bleach or ammonia.

Harvest fruit off trees as soon as it is ripe, and promptly collect fruit that falls.

Only provide bird feeders outside during November through March and always hang feeders so they are inaccessible to bears.

Keep barbecue grills clean.

Keep pets inside.

Securely block access to potential hibernation sites such as crawl spaces under decks and buildings.

Dollar Point Bear News

We are writing this bulletin especially for those of you who live in the Dollar Point area to bring you up to date on what’s been happening with the bears. Our hope is to allow you to be as knowledgeable and prepared as possible in order to help you avoid having any problem.

Many of our local bears have been tamed and feel comfortable around people. As unfortunate as this is, it is nevertheless true and we need to work together on reducing the possibility of having them coming into our yards and homes. We keep records and take reports of all bear related incidents and have determined without any doubt that several people have been deliberately feeding the bears. Most often this is done by visitors who are not aware of the problem this creates or who are not concerned because they are gone after their week is over, leaving the problem for those of us who live here and/or own property here.

We also have people who think it’s cute or exciting to take photos of the bears and so when a bear or bears come into their yard rather than pound ferociously on the window (from inside) and let the bears know they are not welcome too close to the house, they instead talk baby talk to them in order to get that perfect photo. This action, along with deliberate feeding, says to the bears, in the only language they understand, “You are welcome here, we like to share our territory with you, we won’t hurt you, please make yourselves at home in our yards, on our decks and under our homes.” How could they possibly know different when this is what people’s actions are telling them?

To correct the bears’ misunderstanding we need to be extra tough and act like grizzly bears when they come around. There are no grizzlies left in California (we put his image on our flag and then killed the last one in 1922) but when there were grizzlies they kept the black bears submissive and hidden back in the trees of the thick forest. Now it is up to us to step into the vacated paw prints of the long gone grizzly and let these black bears know who is uppermost in the pecking order. It’s Us! They evolved expecting this. They will run away. They do not attack. No one has ever been killed in the state of California or Nevada by a black bear, ever, in all of history.

We have to let them know we are not their friends. Or they will continue to move on in and make themselves at home right under our feet. The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has killed several bears in our area within the last couple of years, and several were taken by hunters or hit by cars and the problem continues. The point being, it doesn’t accomplish anything to kill them. Another bear will soon come to live in the territory just vacated if it is still attractive. By this we mean, if there is food (garbage, Manzanita berries, dog food left out, birdfeeders, fruit trees, etc.) and if they are allowed to casually stroll around without being tormented they will feel at home and we will soon have problems.

The best way to handle the situation is to never allow them one single morsel of food and to yell at them and let them know they are unwelcome every time we see them looking too comfortable in close proximity to our homes. Keep in mind; they must be able to find their way to the Lake. The Lake belongs to them too and we have built our homes between it and the forest so if they are just passing through on their way for a swim or to fish for crawdads we must allow this… But, No loitering! No lounging on or under our decks! No peering into our windows! Get the idea? There are boundaries and we have to tell the bears what those boundary lines are. Our yard is our territory and our house is our den. They understand this because they think the same way. They defend their territory and den against other bears, so we must defend ours against them. We have several important Bear Tips for you to follow in order to help us solve the problem and to assure that you keep your property off the bears’ list of ‘acquired real estate’. Please follow these guidelines and let’s keep the bears out of trouble and our homes safe.

NEVER Feed Bears! This can be translated to mean either purposely or accidentally (garbage, birdseed, pet food, etc.)

Keep all ground floor and accessible doors and windows closed and locked. Bears know how to open anything that is not locked and screens are nonexistent to a bear.

Spray regular scented Pinesol on the outside of kitchen door and window casements. It is oil based and will not stain or damage the wood. It helps to mask the food odors coming from inside and therefore make your kitchen less attractive to a hungry bear. Do this often.

Hang curtains or blinds in kitchen windows and doors and keep them closed when you are away or at night. Bears know there is food to be found in refrigerators and if they can see it they might attempt to enter.

Turn on a light and the TV or radio when you are away from the house to make the bear believe you are inside. They are very reluctant to enter if they think the ‘bear of the house’ is at home.

Get a paintball gun and pop the bear with a barrage of paintballs if he comes into your yard, yelling at him at the same time so he knows it came from you.

Remove all food and scented items from cars, roll up windows and lock the doors. They know how to open car doors and will do so if they smell even as much as an old gum wrapper. Put an open bowl of Pinesol on the front seat while the car is parked, put the lid on when driving so it doesn’t make a mess.

Securely board up accesses to crawl spaces under your home so the bears don’t crawl in and get cozy. They will do this in the summer, using these areas as ‘day beds’ and in winter as hibernation dens. It’s best to stop them before they discover it in the first place.

Report any neighbors who leave trash out for the bears to dine on. This is illegal. Call Environmental Health at 541-6240.

Report any neighbor who is feeding the bears. This is also illegal. Call the BEAR League 525-PAWS (7297).

Bears and You!

What do you do if you come face to face with a bear?

Rest assured if you live in Dollar Point, and come face to face with a bear, it is NOT a Grizzly! If you do encounter a bear, remember the following:

Do not get between a mother and her cub. If you do, slowly move out of the way.

Always give bears time and space to avoid you. Wait off to the side of a trail if you see a bear crossing ahead of you.

Never run away from a bear as this may trigger an instinct to chase. Stand tall and slowly back away.

Bears will sometimes ‘bluff charge’ or ‘huff & blow’ in an attempt to drive you away. Black bears will climb trees when frightened and will not climb down if humans or dogs are present. Loud noises made by radios, whistles or pots and pans banged together can scare away bears.